Amit Shah says Bengal's political shift is unprecedented since independence

Union Home Minister Amit Shah, during a visit to Kolkata on Sunday, stated that the change in government in West Bengal represents a political shift unlike any seen in any state since India's independence in 1947. His comments come months after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ended the Trinamool Congress's (TMC) 15-year rule in the state.

Speaking at the virtual foundation stone laying ceremony for a curd production plant under the Amul Bengal Dairy Project, Shah said, 'The change in Bengal is unlike any political change witnessed in any state across the country since Independence.' He highlighted Bengal's historical contributions to education, the freedom struggle, and cultural renaissance, calling it a 'beacon for the entire country'.

Shah criticised the previous state governments, describing the Left Front, which ruled West Bengal for over three decades (1977-2011), as a 'foreign ideology' and the TMC (2011-2021) as 'corrupt and ideologically bankrupt'. These statements were part of his broader remarks on the state's political trajectory.

The Amul Bengal Dairy Project, an initiative worth Rs 700 crore, is expected to process 30 lakh litres of milk daily and produce 10 lakh kg of curd and other cultured dairy products per day. According to officials, the project will benefit more than 1.25 lakh dairy farmers in West Bengal, including over 30,000 women, and strengthen the cooperative dairy network in eastern India.

Shah's three-day visit to West Bengal included discussions with central and state government officials on governance issues such as curbing infiltration, strengthening law and order, and improving women's safety. The visit concluded with the dairy project event.